Tales from the front line in the hunt for the perfect SCART television for use with the MAME arcade game emulator.

MAME, SCART and CRT links

VGA to SCART:

VGA to SCART Converter
Great write-up and guide from The Nexus. This is the circuit that I use for my own DIY build VGA to SCART cables. The sync combiner circuit documented here works with both ATI and Nvidia cards.

Video cable schematics
A wonderful technical resource created by Jeroni Paul. Here you can find many useful schematics that for all manner of SCART, VGA and JAMMA interconnections. Very clear and concise diagrams and text.

How to use a SCART TV as a Monitor for MAME
A whole range of circuits are detailed here, ranging from simple to complex. Lots of technical information and some excellent circuit diagrams. Great resource for those that want to dig deeper.

MAMESCART
A well written guide to using MAME with a SCART television. The write-up provides a helpful rundown of all the steps involved and has some tasty screenshots that highlight why a CRT is so desirable.

VGA-SCART (articles by Joe Contra)
Slightly quirky site with some easy to understand guides for setting up a VGA to SCART connection. A lot of love and enthusiasm has gone into this one. Joe even has pre-built cables for sale!

Software:

Soft-15kHz
This excellent utility installs a range of videomodes on your PC that are compatible with arcade monitors and SCART televisions. It's incredibly easy to install provides a good ranges of modes.

MAME (official)
Although GroovyMAME is definitely the preferred option when it comes to running MAME with an actual CRT, the official build can still produce good results if you have Soft-15kHz installed.

Guides:

Arcade monitor modeline howto
An exceptional site that explains how CRT monitors draw their images. The whole process is illustrated clearly using animated graphics. The site also examines modeline construction in simple terms.

I want my R-G-B!
Very
well put together site that shows how various console systems can be
wired for RGB. There is also a fantastic comparison page (here) with screenshots showing the difference between composite and RGB.

TV and Monitor CRT (Picture Tube) Information
Super in depth guide to the CRTs used in TVs and monitors. A lot of technical information here including explanations, repair advice and even some trivia. It's a big read but well worth taking the time.

Forums:

GroovyMAME forum
The GroovyMAME forum has become the ultimate destination for those seeking emulation perfection using a CRT. Some excellent technical information scattered throughout and the members are most helpful.

BYOAC's Monitor/Video forum
An excellent resource that has information on a whole range of display options including CRT and LCD. Also, the discussion here is open to all options: computer and arcade monitors as well as TVs.

KLOV's Monitors forum
The most comprehensive monitor repair forum out there. In depth technical discussion on all manner of faults and repairs. Most concepts are applicable to regular televisions as well as arcade chassis.

shmups Hardware forum
A forum that discusses all manner of retro gaming hardware and includes a lot of info on various CRT options. Lots of fanatics that pay exceptional attention to detail. Some excellent info here.

MAME Italian Forum's Hardware section
Great Italian language forum (the link uses Google to translate to English) with some good info on using MAME with hardware (including CRTs). There is some good SCART info to be found scattered about.

Forum threads:

All the posts linked to here have been chosen for the excellent information they contain. After countless hours of forum reading, these are some the best posts I found:

Blogs:

Obsolete Technology Tellye !
The most amazing CRT resource imaginable! Frank Sharp's blog is incredibly detailed and contains technical info that will blow the mind. This site is absolute SCART nirvana! Some serious CRT lust here.

Plogue R&D
David Viens works for the music software company Plogue. They make Chipsounds that emulates many classic video game sound chips. This blog has some amazing posts detailing the dissection of arcade games.